“Deal with Your servant according to Your love and teach me Your decrees.” -Psalm 119:124
This is the second time the psalmist refers to himself as “Your servant”. He is petitioning for the Lord to take up arms on his behalf since he belongs to His service. A master looks out for the well-being of his servants. He makes sure interlopers do not come onto his property to harm or kidnap what does not belong to them. Like a shepherd who fiercely protects his flock from ravenous wolves, so the Father will mercifully take care of His children. We are not only servants, but adopted family in the Kingdom of God. How much more will a father love his son or daughter over a hired hand? How much more will he protect them? God will surely act according to His love for us. If we believe the Lord is perfectly just, perfectly good and perfectly loving, then we can trust Him with our days and obey His commands, as this is our duty and the will of God.
He is also faithful to teach His children. This too is a mercy. Only God bestows instruction, which keeps us from boasting about any spiritual wisdom we have attained. It is a gift from the Lord. The apostle Paul writes, “What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not?” (1 Corinthians 4:7). What a helpful reminder for saints to remain humble in the spiritual graces we have been given. It is because of the Lord’s mercy that we receive anything from Him, not because of our own merit.
The wise man then seeks more wisdom, realizing there is so much he doesn’t know. It is interesting to observe how wisdom and humility intersect to produce a teachable heart. Wisdom is willing to be taught, hungry for truth, sincerely seeking God’s best, instead of looking out for his own interest. The psalmist goes to the Source of all knowledge, asking for God’s grace to teach him more. He is in the best posture to receive spiritual nourishment: a teachable, humble spirit, dependent on God. This the Lord does not despise.
It is a general principle that God grows His children in grace of the knowledge of Him through trials. Here we run to God, cling to Christ, finding comfort and guidance from the Holy Spirit. Our faith is refined in the crosses we bear because as we look to Jesus, we realize we aren’t carrying these burdens alone. Jesus says, “Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28). Our spiritual vision is sharpened when we look to Jesus, the Author and Perfecter of our faith. We can freely approach the Throne of Grace, asking Him to watch over us according to His love and teach us according to His wisdom. Go to Him today and ask, for He will freely give.
Grace upon grace,
April
redeemed in grace 